Tornado strikes Nebraska as winter storm hits South Dakota, Wyoming

By Paul Matadeen, CNN

Updated 1512 GMT (2312 HKT) October 6, 2013

Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds.

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – A truck sits in a soybean field in Wayne, Nebraska, on Saturday, October 5 after being thrown there by a tornado. Storms struck the U.S. starting Friday, October 4, causing tornadoes and dumping snow in South Dakota and Wyoming.

Hide Caption

1 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Tornado damage is seen in Wayne, Nebraska, in this image released by the Nebraska State Patrol.

Hide Caption

2 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – A home near Wayne, Nebraska, shows signs of tornado damage on October 5.

Hide Caption

3 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Farm equipment sits damaged on October 5 after a tornado passed through Wayne, Nebraska.

Hide Caption

4 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Matt and Traci Krus salvage items from their tornado-damaged home on October 5 in Wayne, Nebraska.

Hide Caption

5 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Lori Mehlberg shovels snow to clear a pathway to her home in Rapid City, South Dakota, on October 5. Half the approximately 60,000 residents of Rapid City were without power as of Friday evening, according to Jerry Reichert, a battalion chief with the Rapid City Fire Department.

Hide Caption

6 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – A pedestrian walks by West Boulevard in Rapid City, South Dakota, on October 5.

Hide Caption

7 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Snow is plastered on to the side of the Firestone sign in downtown Rapid City, South Dakota, on October 5.

Hide Caption

8 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – People walk down snow-covered streets in downtown Rapid City, South Dakota, on October 5.

Hide Caption

9 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Chad Hoffman clears snow from the entrance to his apartment building in Rapid City, South Dakota, on October 5.

Hide Caption

10 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Residents try to free a house panel from where it was lodged against a tree following a tornado in Bennet, Nebraska, Friday, October 4. Powerful storms struck the Midwest on Friday, dumping heavy snow in South Dakota, spawning a tornado in Nebraska and threatening dangerous thunderstorms from Oklahoma to Wisconsin.

Hide Caption

11 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Travis Randall walks through the debris-strewn yard of his parent's home in Hickman, Nebraska, on October 4 after it was struck by a tornado.

Hide Caption

12 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Debris, including a toy tractor, hang in a tree following a tornado in Hickman, Nebraska, on October 4.

Hide Caption

13 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Vicki Kempkes' home is seen roofless on October 4 after a tornado went through Bennet, Nebraska.

Hide Caption

14 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Thomas Leighton clears branches and tree limbs from the street in Casper, Wyoming, on October 4. A major storm dumped heavy, wet snow over Wyoming, bringing down trees and power lines along the way.

Hide Caption

15 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Sam Cornia brushes snow off of the windshield of his car on October 4 in Laramie, Wyoming.

Hide Caption

16 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Snow blankets a neighborhood on October 4 in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Hide Caption

17 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Brenda Nolting, of Rapid City, South Dakota, rolls her cart to her car after stocking up on necessities on October 4.

Hide Caption

18 of 19

Photos:Photos: Autumn storms hit the U.S.

Autumn storms hit the U.S. – Ronnie Tonuci, 21, puts gas in his truck after it ran out in the middle of an early season blizzard on October 4, in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Hide Caption

19 of 19

Story highlights

Weather service: Wayne, Nebraska, tornado produced EF-4 damage

Minor injuries but no deaths were reported there, despite the winds

Power knocked out to half the residents of Rapid City, South Dakota

Interstate 80 westbound tangled by wreck in Wyoming

Wicked weather dominated much of the American Midwest and westward on Friday.

A tornado laden storm shocked the people of Wayne, Nebraska, as afternoon turned to evening.

The National Weather Service reported Saturday, based on a preliminary assessment, that the Wayne twister produced EF-4 damage -- which means it likely carried gusts of between 166 and 200 mph.

A few people sustained minor injuries, but luckily no one was killed, said mayor Ken Chamberlain.

The storm produced one or several tornadoes, officials said, that touched down in five spots.

"The primary damage is mostly in the industrial area of Wayne," Chamberlain said. "Approximately 10-12 houses were destroyed but everyone is accounted for and safe."

The storm flipped cars, trapping motorists and ruptured a natural gas line in Wayne, the state's emergency management agency said. "Hazmat is on the scene dealing with the gas leakage," said spokeswoman Jodie Fawl.

The American Red Cross is sending teams to the scene, said Liz Dorland of the agency's Nebraska/Southwest Iowa regional chapter. The agency is "working with local authorities and emergency management to see what the needs are and (to) respond as needed," she said.

Fifteen people injured by the storm were taken to Providence Medical Center in Wayne, hospital spokesperson Sandra Bartling said. No deaths from the tornado had been reported, officials said.

Tornado victim: I heard windows explode

MUST WATCH

JUST WATCHED

Blizzard wreaks havoc in Wyoming

MUST WATCH

Farther west, in Rapid City, South Dakota, and in eastern Wyoming, a winter storm caused locals to take cover.

Half the approximately 60,000 residents of Rapid City were without power as of Friday evening, said Jerry Reichert, a battalion chief with the Rapid City Fire Department.

Reichert said firefighters responded to reports of several people stuck in the road because of the weather. At least one tree landed on the roof of a home on Friday, but Reichert said he was not aware of any fatalities or injuries as of Friday evening.

In the morning, Rapid City police issued a "no travel" advisory for the city. They described conditions as "deteriorating quickly" and warned travelers that visibility was "at about a quarter-mile."

Police also warned that "thick slush on the roads is causing vehicles to hydroplane."

A dispatcher for the Wyoming Highway Patrol said the majority of Interstate 25 in the state had been shut because of bad weather.

A small stretch in the middle of the state, around Casper, remained open, but it was restricted to necessary travel, the dispatcher said.

Dave Kingham, a spokesman for the Wyoming Department of Transportation, said Interstate 80 westbound between Laramie, Wyoming, and Cheyenne, Wyoming, was closed after an early evening accident. On the eastbound side of that same stretch, Kingham said, the "chain law" was in effect. That means vehicles must use chains or snow tires to travel the interstate legally.

On average, Kingham said, the closed stretch of I-80 accommodates about 6,000 vehicles each day.